I came across this place on TikTok after seeing a local creator review and decided to give it a…read moretry. Unfortunately, from the moment we arrived, things felt off. After driving around for over 30 minutes trying to find parking in a notoriously difficult area in Newark to find parking, we finally parked about seven blocks away. When we arrived around 6 p.m., the restaurant was completely empty.
The hostess and waitstaff were all sitting on their phones at the hostess stand, and the rest of the staff was seated in the kitchen. It took a few minutes before anyone acknowledged us. We were seated in the floral themed area that feels like you're outdoors but aren't. The chairs were uncomfortable and kept sliding against the door. From the start, our waitress seemed annoyed by us and made us feel like we were not welcomed.
We ordered the mussel appetizer, which came with corn, tomato, and a cilantro vinaigrette and it was delicious. For our main dishes, we decided to share the seafood soup and get the Pobre Steak, which included steak, white rice, sweet plantains, and fries. I wanted to order the Tallarine pasta with steak as well, but when I started ordering, the waitress abruptly took the menu and walked away before I could finish. She seemed irritated when I asked to upgrade the white rice to Chaufa rice as shown on the TikTok and other photos, but she said that wasn't an option.
I decided to not to order the pasta for myself when she decided to come back because I already knew it was time to go. When the food arrived, the soup came without rice, which struck me as odd since most Spanish style soups include it. When I asked, the waitress said the rice was extra, so I ordered a side. The soup arrived about 15-20 minutes before the other entree. The flavor was decent, but the seasoning had an off, almost stale taste, and the yuca was undercooked.
The Pobre Steak was taken to go because we were uncomfortable and the eggs on top were partially raw, and the fries were undercooked. The steak itself was well seasoned and tasty, though. Which shocked me honestly even though it needed a little char. The only other customers who came in during our visit were American and another waitress seemed equally annoyed but did have a better attuitude than ours.
When the bill came, the server said, "I'll wait for your card," as if we were about to leave without paying, despite not having complain once. Also, the restaurant adds an automatic 18% gratuity regardless of party size. While I usually tip generously, I find mandatory gratuity for small groups frustrating especially when the service was bad and made us feel unwelcome.
We had planned a relaxed date night, but instead, we left and went to our original choice for drinks, apps, and dessert. Overall, it was not a great experience, and I won't be returning.